Original Nightmare
by simison
Summary: *Sequel to First Nightmare* A group of teens fall into the world of Resident Evil and unintentionally change the timeline of the Marcus incident. Now, the survivors split into two groups. Ryan with his girlfriend, his cousin, and Kevin Dooley head to the city to warn Alpha team, while Rebecca with dimensional-crossers, Tiffany and David, head to the Spencer Mansion.
1. Ch 1: Cavalry

**Ch. 1: Fetching the Cavalry**

**A/N: **So, here we are at the sequel to a fanfic that took me almost six years to complete. Half of it because I was still in school, the other half because what began as a simple last sweep of spelling errors morphed into a complete revision which pretty much created an all-new story.

I have no intentions of repeating that with this one.

Originally, I planned to create a character poll when I posted the last chapter to First Nightmare. But, somewhere in my haste to finish the story, I forgot to. So, I am now posting the poll along with the first chapter. The poll is on my author's page, and the chapter ends with my musings.

Enjoy!

* * *

Ryan yawned as he stepped over the thousandth stick. He took a moment to push his rectangular glasses back up on his sweating nose before he trudged on. His feet ached with each step and the assault rifle- although it provided a much needed source of protection and confidence- became heavy after the first hour of walking. _And we're on hour four, I think._ He glanced over his shoulder to see how the others were holding up.

Lindsay, his girlfriend, trotted a step behind him. Her blue jacket was tied around her waist, revealing her pink blouse. She smiled at him, her brown freckles dancing on her face, but he knew she was doing the worst out of their group. Before the...event happened, he and she were about to go on a date. Alabama in October may not be as bad compared to some places; but Lindsay was easily chilled and picked a warm outfit for that day. Which backfired when they teleported here, shifting them from October to July. Even though the Sun wasn't over the horizon yet, the heat took its toll on them. Ryan was glad he toughed out the Alabama weather with his Auburn Tigers jersey and black jeans, a much lighter and cooler outfit. Unfortunately, he'd been worried about Lindsay ever since Kevin warned that dehydration could set in if they didn't get water soon.

The former pilot marched next to Lindsay. While Lindsay kept her attention on where she walked, Kevin constantly scanned the dark woods. With his short brown hair, Kevin looked far more official than the rest of them as he traveled in his pilot's outfit, although his helmet was burning somewhere in the training facility rubble. The way his amber eyes squinted toward the distance, Ryan knew Kevin would prefer to have a flashlight along with his handgun. However since Ryan had the lead, Kevin wasn't going to force the teen to return the borrowed item. Even if he did have it, Kevin couldn't use it with his handgun. His left arm, which was glass-free, was still bandaged from elbow to wrist with three of his fingers in tiny splints. Ryan couldn't help but remember how Kevin's arm used to look, when Ryan was left on guard duty back in the training facility. The three fingers had been black and blue and twisted at grotesque angles, with dark red, soaked bandages covering his arm. All things considered, it was a small price compared to how bad a train wreck could get. Ryan still shuddered and was glad that Kevin was doing much better.

Bringing up the rear was Ryan's cousin: Gordon. Like Lindsay, the tallest of them had shed his blue jacket not long after they started their trek. To Ryan's annoyance, Gordon wore an AU shirt with 'Roll Tide!' in big letters over the front. As poor as his taste in football teams was, Gordon fulfilled his duties as rearguard much more faithfully, checking behind them every few steps, handgun at the ready in case anything did attack them. Ryan wondered how much Gordon knew about Resident Evil. Unlike Ryan and Lindsay, who'd only seen a couple of the movies, Ryan knew Gordon had played one of the games, though he wasn't sure which one. _I should ask him about that when I get a chance. _

The football player tripped on a rock and stumbled forward. He recovered and kept the flashlight shining ahead of him.

"Keep your head faced forward. We're almost there," Kevin whispered encouragingly.

"How close do you think we are?" Ryan asked.

"Less than an hour now," the pilot guessed, "We're making good time."

"Can't wait until we're out of here," Gordon mumbled as he stared at the trees. In the moonlight, the shadows falling off them formed into grasping claws and devious nets. Worse than the shadow images were the trees themselves. All it took was one tree to hide one z-dog, zombie, or some other monstrosity. Being surrounded by a legion of them did **not** improve Gordon's sense of security. He hopped over one outstretched root with a quiet glare.

"I second that," Ryan declared as he shined the flashlight at a bush. A rabbit scurried out of it, which probably meant that it was safe, seeing as how nothing was eating the rabbit. Ryan remembered how their little adventure started off, with David being attacked by a hiker zombie, followed shortly by a zombie dog pack coming after them. Ryan scanned the nearby trees, checking to see which ones were easiest to climb. That's what had saved them from the pack, hiding from them and one unlucky deer who had led the pack off before they could smell the human prey above them. _This time, we'll fight back,_ Ryan thought as he patted his M16.

Unlike their first trek through the forest, this one was danger-free...so far. No sign of zombies, z-dogs, or anything else which had plagued David, Tiffany, and the others. The worst moment was when they had to cross a wide meadow. With no trees to climb and to be out in the open, the meadow with its flowers and low grass had been a terrifying place. Ryan's first thought was to simply go around it. Kevin had shot down that idea, pointing out that unless they found the opposite spot, they'd risk getting lost. After a long moment of observation, all four of them had sprinted across the clearing. The seconds had felt like hours as Ryan's ears waited to hear a growl, a moan, any noise that told them they were prey and the predator had come.

But no. They reached the other side with gasping breaths, hurting sides, but with nothing chasing their tails. _From now on, I'm always carrying a compass,_ Ryan swore. He looked up out of the tree line and saw something that promised to bring sweet relief to all of them. The black sky receded as a gray and blue one slowly advanced. _It's almost dawn, thank God._

Ryan couldn't wait for the towering skyscrapers of Raccoon City to break through the tree line into sight. He wanted to finally see something familiar, something denied to him at the Umbrella training facility. When David first mentioned the place, for half a second, Ryan wondered if it was like the mansion or the Hive in the first Resident Evil film. It wasn't. The monsters were familiar, but everything else wasn't. There was no Rebecca, Billy, Kevin, or Edward in the movies. No giant leeches either.

_I wonder if there is an Alice in the game series. I should ask David that next time I see him. _Ryan's thoughts turned to his friend and the others who weren't with them. David, Tiffany, Rebecca, and Enrico were on their way to the Umbrella main labs. No doubt they would have to go through more of Umbrella's unleashed insanity before they'd make it safely back to the city. Ryan wasn't too worried about it though. David, unlike everyone else, was intimately familiar with the video games and had gotten most of them through the night, with the exceptions of his fellow soldiers, ironically enough. Tiffany would probably survive too, Ryan guessed. _She's crazy...but she seems to be just the right kind of crazy for this sort of thing. _Enrico appeared to be a tough and level-headed officer and Ryan doubted any monster could take him down, now that the leader of STARS Bravo team had a grenade launcher. _And Rebecca, so long as she's with Tiffany or David, I'm sure she'll be fine. _

Ryan patted his pocket as his thoughts reminded him of his mission. _It's simple enough. Get to the city, get to STARS, give them the coordinates to the Umbrella Labs, they'll go, give David and the others back-up, we stay, get Kevin to the hospital and hold tight until they come back. Don't worry, David. I won't let you down. _The football player took another step though a thick line of greenery and was surprised when his foot landed on flat terrain. He paused and shined his flashlight around him.

A simple dirt path cut through the woods as it curved and bended around trees. "Finally. A sign of civilization," Ryan declared as he stepped into the path's center. He tried to get an idea of how far it went, but thanks to how it wound, he couldn't see much farther than a half dozen yards.

"This is a good sign," Kevin echoed. "This is the trail that connects Raccoon City to nearby Marble City. If we go right, we'll back in Raccoon in no time."

Lindsay threw a quizzical glance at the pilot. Ryan voiced her question. "Marble City? Is that really the other town's name?"

"Yes. Why?"

"Whoever came up with these names aren't very imaginative," Ryan stated as he restarted, traveling on the new route. "I bet half the buildings look like ancient Greek stuff."

"Actually, the name Marble isn't about the rock, but it comes from the nearby Marble River. It's the largest river in the region," Kevin explained as he glanced outward.

"Got it," the high school student replied, his interest waning as they marched on. At first, Ryan thought it was a boon that they found the nature trail. Now, they didn't have to worry about tripping over rocks or falling into holes. However, the longer they walked, the more exposed Ryan felt. _It's pretty easy to notice us. I mean, we weren't very stealthy breaking branches, but every time we take a step here, we make a crunch. _His mind unwilling focused on the sound as the four of them walked. Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch. After moments, Ryan refused to believe anything nearby **couldn't** hear the cacophony they made. _Argh! Just, chill man. It's gonna be alright. Just walk down this trail, get to the City, and we're safe. ...maybe if we ran down the path, it'd be better. I mean, with all of the racket we're making, how can we possibly hear anything coming at us? _Ryan took a deep breath as he tried to expel his fear. _Stop it. Gotta be strong. For Lindsay. _He glanced behind him and shot a confident grin at his girlfriend. The brown-eyed girl returned a reassuring smile before reaching forward and grabbing his wrist, since his hands were occupied. The fear retreated from the affection stoking his heart. _We'll be fine. _

"What's that?" Gordon asked from behind. The group stopped and Ryan immediately noticed what Gordon referred to, and silently berated himself for not catching it sooner. Ahead of them on the left side of the path, the forest fought against man's past industry as it tried to overwhelm a large structure. The group moved forward until they stood at the entrance of a tall, black-iron fence surrounding the structure. What was behind the fence pulled them to a halt.

"It's a hospital," Lindsay whispered as her surprised eyes lingered over the building.

"What's left of one," Gordon added as he stared uneasily at the structure.

Ryan felt as unnerved as he scanned the building with the flashlight. Nature had yet to break its walls, but time and storms had left broken windows, leaving jagged holes that stared at Ryan. Fingers of old paint clutched and cracked as it peeled off the walls. Vines slithered over it, while plants and grass crowded at its foundations. Ryan jerked the flashlight toward one broken window, but the shape he thought he saw wasn't there. _Please tell me I'm just seeing things_. "What's a hospital doing all the way out here?"

Kevin stared at it, focusing on the rusted front door. "It was supposed to be for injured hikers and for people living on the edge of the city. There's an actual helipad on top so rescue teams could deploy rapidly, but there was an accident years ago and they closed it all down."

Ryan shifted his gaze to the pilot. "What kind of accident?"

The pseudo-STARS member shrugged. "Don't remember. There are all kinds of rumors flying around, including ghost stories. It's become Raccoon City's resident haunted site. Either way, it's not our problem. Keep moving."

Ryan happily complied.

"Does that mean we're close?" Gordon prompted as he finished his last look at the place.

"Very close," Kevin answered, "There's a suspension bridge not too far from here. Beyond that, it's a twenty-minute walk until we reach the city limits. On the other side of the bridge, the path converges with the other nature trails. Just remember the general direction to go, and we should be fine." He looked up. The darkness had relinquished the sky and there was enough light that the flashlight was dimming in comparison. "There's only one other landmark after the bridge, but we might not see it if dawn doesn't get here soon. Off the main path is a log cabin belonging to an old doctor. If you see that, that means you're on the right trail."

"Is he still there?" Lindsay inquired.

Kevin nodded. "He's a stubborn old man. He was supposed to leave the forest once the police department closed the forest to civilians, but he refuses to budge."

Lindsay frowned worriedly. "Why haven't they simply escorted him out? It's very dangerous out here."

"We've sent a few officers to do just that," Kevin affirmed. "But the old coot knows this forest better than our men. Each time we've sent someone out, he always finds out we're coming and leaves the cabin. We've tried to search the forest, but that was fruitless. Tried to wait him out once, but he stayed out there for two whole days before Chief Irons finally called us back in. Chief said it was a waste of manpower and resources to try to get just one old man out."

"I hope he's alright," Lindsay wished as they rounded another turn. "Maybe we should check the cabin on our way back? What are the chances of him being awake at this hour?"

"We have our orders," Kevin pointedly reminded her as he pushed a rogue tree branch away from his face.

"What's the harm?" Ryan added while he kept his eyes forward. "We're already on our way out. There's no way he'd know we're coming from inside the forest. Sounds like the perfect opportunity to knock out two birds with one stone."

Kevin studied the group hesitantly. In particular, he focused on Gordon. "If he tries to resist and we have to use force, you realize you'll have to be the one to carry him out?" The pilot glared at his broken fingers for a moment before he looked back at Gordon. "I'm injured, Lindsay won't be strong enough to offer much support, and Ryan has to keep an eye out since he's on point."

Gordon considered his answer. Lindsay aimed a hopeful look at him, while Ryan turned around to walk backwards. The smaller cousin alternated between Gordon and Lindsay, his thoughts plain on his face. _Really, Ryan? You'd do anything to make her happy, wouldn't you? I don't like it. I just want to get out of here and just go home. We've already lost two people who dimension-traveled with us. Do you really want to press our luck out here? _But under the combined weight of the three stares, Gordon surrendered. "Fine."

Lindsay gifted him with a grateful smile, while Ryan mouthed _'I owe you one'._ Gordon agreed. Kevin looked disappointed but returned to his over watch. "Let's be quick then."

Ryan released a triumphant shout after the next turn. "There it is!" He announced as he pointed ahead of them. Crossing a small gorge, a sturdy wooden bridge crossed the gap and beckoned them. The glasses-wearing high-schooler stopped and turned to the others. "We're almost there!"

"RARGH!"

Ice overwhelmed Ryan's heart. The surprise on his companions' face quickly morphed into outright horror in the seconds following the roar. The roar that came from directly behind him. The roar that faded even as the rumble of thunderous footsteps replaced it. Footsteps that ran toward _him**.**_ Ryan spun around, his fingers desperately fiddling with the rifle's safety.

He saw a shape. Humanoid. He couldn't make out details. Because after a solitary second, something else clenched his attention. The figure rampaging towards him held it. The wooden handle extended out before fitting neatly into an iron head. An iron head in the shape of a wide and very sharp 'D'. Ryan screamed as the axe sliced downward.

And two halves of a pair of glasses fell at his feet.


	2. Ch 2: Ambush

**Ch. 2: Escaping the Ambush**

Gordon remembered the first time he saw David and Tiffany fight two zombies. It had been a ridiculous battle. David had been so intense and nervous that he accidentally threw his handgun out of his sweaty hands. Despite the mishap, they successfully killed the ex-soldiers who threatened to devour them. Gordon never said anything, but his opinion of David fell a few notches after that stunt. Tiffany had killed her zombie much more efficiently, and David, who was the true Resident Evil fan of the group and one of their soldiers, had provided an embarrassing example. _This was the guy who was supposed to get them through the night alive?_ Gordon had thought.

Then the z-dog attack at the train happened. The same attack which left Andrew dead with a torn throat as their first casualty. Gordon had been unarmed and reduced to running around the car to escape death at the hands of both the zombies and the z-dogs. The wild panic fear had thrown him in was powerful and all-consuming. After the incident, Gordon swore to himself he'd never lose his nerve like that so long as he had a gun to fight back with.

And here he was.

Standing in the middle of Raccoon Forest. Holding a loaded Beratta. And all he could do was stare at the spot where his cousin's body had collapsed. _It...just doesn't __**feel**__ real._ _I...I need to move._ _Do...something._ His body disagreed. His arms wouldn't rise, his legs took no steps, and his eyes were locked on the murderer before him. The axe-wielding psychopath wore no shirt, white chest hair covering his upper torso. His face was obscured by a close-fitting, black mask that covered his entire head, his neck, and half of his shoulders. His back was permanently bent, another indicator of his advanced age. As the murderer bent down to grab his axe, he stepped out of the shadow of a tree, and provided the group with a strange sight. Above the waistline of his belted brown pants, a strange glowing-green growth covered half his stomach.

While Gordon could only look, Lindsay suffered no such petrifaction as she wailed and screamed an agonizing chorus as she watched the axe man pull his weapon out of Ryan's corpse. Her fingers clutched at her face as she shook her head, as though she could shake the nightmare away.

Acting in a far cry from his train performance, Kevin roared, "Bastard!" He snapped his arm up as he fired off two quick rounds into the axe man's chest. Gordon watched as the two bullets penetrated through the man's bare chest. Blood spat out of the new wounds for a moment...then nothing. The masked man did not die, he did not scream in pain, he didn't even pay any attention to his injuries.

_Is he...a ganado? _Gordon wondered helplessly as the axe man turned toward them. Undeterred, Kevin fired again and again into the unknown creature. _How did they handle this? _Gordon thought back to his friends who had fought on the front line at the training facility, his thoughts focusing on Tiffany and her ever-present crazed grin as she fought monsters, enjoying every fight as though it were all a game. _Maybe that's her secret. She just thinks of it as a game. _ The murderer lifted his axe again, the motion oddly slow and rickety.

Gordon mixed imagination and memory as he conjured a mental PS2 controller. He loaded his latest Resident Evil 4 save file and watched the screen as Leon and the Spanish castle materialize. _Hold R1. _Gordon's arms broke through the spell of terror as he took aim at the approaching enemy. _Press_ _X_. The handgun recoiled as it shot lead. _X, X, X, X._ Small spurts of blood punctuated every bullet tearing into the masked killer.

It wasn't enough.

The axe man roared as he charged toward the pair, his old body temporarily leaving its rot behind. Gordon nearly dropped the gun as he bolted toward the side, only stopping when he realized the axe man wasn't changing course, and he was safe.

Kevin wasn't.

Bravo Team's pilot backpedaled as he fired again and again into the rampaging killer. When the distance between them numbered a solitary foot, the axe came down. Kevin screamed as metal edge bit into his chest. For one horrified second, Gordon thought it was just him and Lindsay left, but Kevin stumbled back and yelled. "RUN!"

As the axe murderer creaked back up, Kevin raced around him. He dropped his gun as he reached out and grabbed Lindsay's hand, pulling the crying girl with him. Gordon ran after them. The muffled sound of footsteps hitting dirt gave way to the loud, clacking noise of wood as they crossed the bridge. Resisting the urge to look back, the trio ran and ran. Kevin instinctively made turns as he led them away from danger. When Gordon's lungs were on fire and he thought he would collapse, metal and stone buildings broke through nature's domain. _Raccoon City. _Gordon ran with renewed vigor. Only now did he dare look back...and saw the non-existent pursuit which hounded them. "He's not coming after us!" he wheezed out.

Exhaustion won the battle against fear and slowed them to a walk, right as they made it to a police checkpoint guarding the forest entrance. One cop was already talking on his car's radio, while a black officer with the nameplate "Branagh" carefully took a few steps toward them, firearm out and in his hands. "Halt! You are trespassin...Kevin?"

The pilot released Lindsay's hand as he shakily strode toward the officer. "Marvin, I...STARS.." Kevin collapsed to the ground.

Marvin swore as he holstered his handgun and knelt down. "How long until the ambulance gets here?" he shouted to his partner.

"Five minutes!"

Officer Branagh rolled over the pilot, and Gordon received his first good look at Kevin's injury. The axe cut was shallow, which explained Kevin's escape. The slowing cascade of blood coloring his uniform spoke of a far more lethal problem. Kevin's face was drenched in sweat and yet he was pale and shivering. His eyes stared at Marvin as his mouth silently tried to form words. "If we don't get him to the hospital ASAP, he's going to die of blood loss." The officer shoved his hands over the wound, trying to staunch the bleeding. He looked up at Gordon. "Give me a hand!" Gordon pocketed his half-depleted gun before he joined the officer's first aid attempts. "Explain to me what happened, and who you are."

Gordon winced as his hands closed over the slick, sticky skin. He opened his mouth to speak when doubts assaulted him. _Wait, how do I know he's not with Umbrella? This whole town is supposed to be Umbrella's backyard, isn't it? Should I tell him anything? _He glanced at Lindsay for help and quickly realized she was in no condition to do so. The brunette was sitting down, her arms wrapped around her legs as she quietly sobbed.

Beside him, Branagh's waiting stare became suspicious. "The forest is closed down to all civilians. What were you and her doing out there?"

"It wasn't just us," Gordon blurted out as he tried not to think about the former fourth member of their group.

"Explain."

Gordon hesitated as he felt reality reassert itself. _He's dead. My cousin. He's back there somewhere with that monster, dead. _"We...we were attacked. By. ...by an axe-wielding maniac. He killed my cousin." Gordon attempted to gather his thoughts to form a coherent story, but Ryan was now a black hole in his mind. "He's dead."

The officer studied him, then Lindsay. A siren wailed in the distance, heralding the approaching ambulance. "Just stay calm and relax. You're safe now." He shouted to his partner to watch the forest.

_Am I? _Gordon nodded as he tried to keep the blood inside of Kevin. The pilot had stopped shivering a minute ago. A bad sign. When the ambulance shot into view, Gordon reluctantly asked, "We're staying with Kevin, right?"

Branagh frowned. "Are either of you injured?"

Gordon knew he wasn't. Besides the axe man and a few exceptions, the tall teen had stayed away from the fighting at the training facility, as had Lindsay and Ryan. He checked Lindsay again and saw some blood drops across her pants. _Is that hers or Kevin's? Does it matter? Will we be better off at the hospital than anywhere else? _All Gordon knew was that he needed to contact STARS. _And the best way, I think, is going to be by staying with Kevin._ "I think she is."

Mercifully, Branagh didn't check her as he focused on keeping Kevin's life inside of his body. The ambulance halted beside the cop car and two paramedics hopped out with a stretcher. "I'll send an officer to the hospital to get the details. Until then, you are to travel with the ambulance."

The two of them stepped back as the paramedics went to work. Officer Branagh helped Gordon and Lindsay into the ambulance as he shouted more orders to his partner. After grabbing something to clean his hands, the cop stepped back as the ambulance doors closed.

The paramedics were a whirlwind of activity as they bandaged Kevin's wound. Gordon tried to pay attention, but they spoke so quickly and used so many medical terms that it was pointless. One thing was clear. If Kevin didn't get a blood transfusion soon, he'd become the next casualty of this mess. Gordon wondered how he'd feel if Kevin died now, after just making it to the city. _It'd suck, but I don't really know him. Heck, I don't really know anyone besides Lindsay and..._

Gordon distracted himself by staring out of the ambulance's rear windows. Buildings, street lights, and bystanders zoomed behind them as the ambulance hurried to the hospital. _So, this is the Raccoon City. Leon's first and last job as a cop. The incident coming here is what's going to sink Umbrella. _Now, if only Gordon knew any of the details. He'd only played Resident Evil 4, and all they said about Raccoon City was that it was a disaster. _But how? I don't know any details. I didn't play the other games, and I haven't seen any of the movies. _A quick check on Lindsay reinforced his impression she was in no condition to satisfy the gaping hole in his knowledge. The other high-schooler pressed herself into a corner and cried into her hands.

Gordon sighed and went back to studying the urban landscape. The entrance to the city park, and a large building attached to a clock tower traveled by the windows as the ambulance slowed down. One of the paramedics broke away from Kevin's pale body as he checked on Lindsay, while the other checked on Gordon. "I'm fine," the tall teen told the thirty-something paramedic.

"Just need to check you to be sure. You three have been through a traumatic experience," the dark-haired man replied.

_We used to be four,_ Gordon thought glumly.

Satisfied with Gordon's health, the paramedic turned back to Kevin, saying in an optimistic voice, "You two stay in the waiting area, while they patch up your friend."

The moment the ambulance stopped, the paramedics charged out, carrying Kevin on the stretcher. They unlocked the wheels and hurried him inside. Gordon and Lindsay followed at a snail's pace. As they walked, Gordon got a good view of the place. The hospital wasn't a very large building, looking like someone had taken a rectangle and bent it forty-five degrees toward the street, the bent line neatly cutting the building into halves. What it lacked in size, it made up for in height, towering over them at four stories. In the early morning light, the sunlight reflected off the upper windows, blinding Gordon for a moment when he looked at the top floor. He focused on the entrance where the paramedics were wheeling Kevin into. Two pillars built into the light-blue and white-striped building framed a pair of glass doors. Located helpfully above the clear doors was a red hospital cross, which was beneath the sign 'Raccoon Hospital'. In case that wasn't enough, two feet above the sigh, another larger version jutted out so you could see it down the street.

Gordon glanced at Lindsay to see if she recognized anything, but the despondent girl kept her gaze on the ground as she dutifully followed Gordon inside. What bothered her new caretaker was the way she shivered and how pale she was. _She must really be that broken up. Ry…an told me that they were close. I didn't think they were __**that**__ close though. _

His attention shifted back to the hospital as they stepped through the entrance. This early in the morning, it was no surprise the place was empty. A reception office with four cubicles occupied most of the right wall. Gordon caught a glimpse of the paramedics hurrying around a corner that squeezed between the reception office and the back wall which had a TV showing the latest of Umbrella's pain-killers. He took a step toward them when he remembered that they weren't supposed to follow them in. A young woman with bags beneath her eyes looked at them from behind her glass cubicle. She pointed to the door on their left. "The waiting room is right through that door."

Gordon nodded his thanks before following through with her directions. As he opened the door, he caught sight of a metal shutter contained in the ceiling in front of the door. _The waiting room needs a security gate? Well... I guess it'll be helpful when the zombies come. _ Their footsteps echoed on the marble tiles as Gordon led them to a nearby bench. In contrast to the utilitarian approach to the reception area, white stone statues sat elegantly in alcoves in the wall, while various samples of small trees and flowers breathed fresh life into the room. For all of the classic interior, it had the opposite impact on Gordon. The training facility's main hall, where Gordon and the others had waited, was decorated in the same manner. The back half of the room wasn't as bad with a circulation desk opposite of nurse's station squeezed the walk area into a narrow path going deeper into the hospital. A doctor spoke with a nurse and glanced at them as they entered. Gordon paid them no mind as he sat down.

Once they were seated, a wave of helplessness washed over Gordon. _Well…now what? Can't check on Kevin, can't call the others and figure out what they're doing, and I can't call home because my service plan doesn't exist yet. _Back at the training facility, Gordon was more than happy to wait for David and the others to clear a safe path. Now that he was here, safety was guaranteed...well, at least safety from monsters was guaranteed. _I need to do something but what? _

The decision ambushed him when Lindsay suddenly fell forward onto the floor. He stared at her, his mind a clutter of thoughts as he struggled to understand what just happened. "Lindsay?" He knelt down next to her before he realized someone else was with them.

The doctor from earlier, a tall, brown-haired man with friendly eyes introduced himself as he took over. "Hello, I'm Doctor George Hamilton. What seems to be the problem?" he asked matter-of-factly as he provided a source of calm in Gordon's agitated state.

"I don't know," Gordon reluctantly admitted. The two of them gently rolled Lindsay onto her back. The brunette starred uncomprehendingly as her lungs labored for air.

The doctor studied her as he pulled out his stethoscope. "Nurse, please get a stretcher."

"Yes, Doctor Hamilton." The nurse behind the desk quickly hurried out of the room to get help, brushing past Gordon.

The teenager fidgeted as he waited for an explanation. He twitched when the doctor muttered, "she's not sweating." The doctor glanced up at him after a moment. "When was the last time she had something to drink?"

"Uhhh…"

Doctor Hamilton nodded. "As I feared. Your friend is suffering from heat stroke. We need to cool her down and get her some fluids. Quickly."


	3. Ch 3: Jill

**Ch. 3: Meeting Jill**

Jill Valentine stifled a yawn as she pulled into the hospital parking lot. Green, glowing digital lines formed 6:38 AM and stared at her from the vehicle's digital clock, which meant she'd been awake almost an hour now. After Bravo team deployed, Captain Wesker ordered Joseph to man the STARS radio for the graveyard shift, and to alert Alpha team if anything went wrong, while the rest of the team was to rest and be ready in case of an emergency. Jill had woken a couple of hours earlier so she could relieve Joseph an hour ahead of his shift. Joseph had welcomed her into the office with tired cheer before her plans were derailed when Neil Carlsen arrived to deliver a report.

As Jill stepped out of the police car, she glanced over the building, wondering which room was Kevin's. Joseph's annoyance with Carsen's interruption had melted away when the news was delivered. Kevin, Bravo Team's pilot, was heavily wounded. Not just wounded, but he was on death's doorstep. All Carsen could explain was Kevin had arrived at the edge of town with two unknown teenagers and had collapsed due to a large cut in his chest. Worse, there was no sign of the rest of Bravo Team. Suffice to say, the few tidbits they had only provoked questions upon questions.

The confused thoughts whirling around Jill's mind were silenced after stepping into the hospital. Raymond, one of Raccoon's finest, was in the entry hall waiting for her. "Officer Valentine," the blond cop greeted her with a curt nod. A hospital staff member stood next to him but left before Jill could speak with him.

She returned the nod, focusing on her co-worker. "Officer Douglas, how are you?"

"I've been better." He pointed up. "The two you're looking for are upstairs on the third floor. Room 302."

Jill's confusion intensified, along with her fear. "I thought I was here for Kevin?" she inquired, her voice just above a whisper.

The taller cop slowly shook his head. "Not anymore. I just got the news. Kevin passed away two minutes ago. They weren't able to get him the blood transfusion in time."

Her lungs balked at the news and Jill had to remind them to continue performing their function. Faces of Bravo team flashed by her: Enrico, Forest, Richard, Edward, Kenneth, and the new girl, Rebecca. All of them were now stranded in the middle of a forest with cannibalistic murderers. Her eyes flashed to the ceiling as she thought about Kevin's temporary companions. With a near-physical effort, she pulled her thoughts away from the hostile forest and back to the safety of the hospital. "What did the two teenagers tell you?"

"Nothing."

The Alpha team member shot the cop a distressed look. "Nothing?" _Are they dying too?_

Raymond shook his head. "A few minutes before you arrived, the female suffered from a heat stroke and was admitted as a patient. She's still unconscious, and the male refuses to speak with me. He said he'd only talk to someone from STARS."

As relieved as Jill was that her only two witnesses weren't in critical condition, this newest info only added to her perplexion. "Why?"

He shrugged. "Don't know. I ordered him to hand over his wallet, but he's not carrying any identification beyond an Alabama's Learner's Permit."

Jill quirked an eyebrow. "Alabama?"

"I can't make any sense of it either," Raymond admitted, "His name is Gordon Hammonds the Third, while the female is Lindsay Camp."

She took a moment to memorize the names, even as she felt the mystery growing stranger and stranger the more she learned. As much as she wanted to meet them, she had one last reluctant question. "What happened to Kevin?" she asked quietly.

Raymond sighed before he pulled out a small notebook. He flipped to the last page before he explained matter-of-factly. "What killed him was a large laceration into his chest. Had someone staunch the bleeding from the get-go, he might have survived. Unfortunately, he and the other two were seen running out of the forest, and the physical activity only accelerated his blood loss." He put away the notebook, while keeping a close and concerned eye on her.

Jill knew Kevin wasn't a medic, but as a law enforcement officer who had seen some fights, he should've known better than to be moving around with a serious wound. What kind of danger would've sent him into a dead sprint? "I see," she murmured.

"That's not all of it," he warned her. He hesitated before he continued. "Three of his left fingers were broken, and something caused numerous, shallow cuts along his left arm. Upon closer inspection, they found tiny bits of glass buried in the wounds."

Jill mulled over the input as she struggled to identify what could have caused it. "Any evidence he was attacked by someone with a broken bottle?" she half-guessed, disturbed by the possibilities.

Raymond shook his head. "Unconfirmed. Your guess is as good as mine. Those teens probably know, but you seem to be the only one who might get Gordon to open up."

"If all he wants is to talk to someone with STARS, then I should have no problem," Jill predicted optimistically, hiding her doubts behind a small, determined look. "Room 302, you said?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I'll be here when you're finished."

She said farewell to the officer before journeying up the hospital floors.

* * *

The chair was nothing more than two slabs of plastic held together by four wooden poles. Although he was only seventeen, Gordon's tall size meant the back-rest only reached his lower back. Sunlight warmed his back as he faced away from the window, his eyes focused on Dr. Hamilton as he checked Lindsay's vitals one more time. The brunette was now in a hospital gown as she rested in the bed with an IV hooked to her left arm. Gordon would like to think she was comfortable underneath the sheets, but the edges of her lips were twisted downward and her closed eyes seemed ready to cry.

On the other hand, Hamilton operated with an upbeat, caring precision that warred with Lindsay's overt melancholy. George's lips twitched with a ready smile hidden just beneath the surface. His bagged eyes were bright with optimism as he scanned the machine hooked to his newest patient. Gordon wasn't sure if the doctor was naturally this buoyant or if it was just for his sake. The smile broke through as the older gentleman turned his gaze on Gordon after consulting his clipboard. "You have nothing to worry about. She's stable and will make a quick recovery before you know it."

"Thanks," Gordon muttered as he sank into his chair, the recent events weighing him down.

"My shift will be ending shortly, but I'll have someone keep an eye on you two in case anything else comes up," Doctor Hamilton said. Gordon nodded, thankful to have found such a helpful person in this ominous city.

With his services at an end, George headed to the door with a cheerful, "good-bye" thrown over his shoulder. As the doctor reached the door, it opened for him as a fourth figure entered the room, a young woman with short brown hair and in a RPD uniform. Gordon nearly wrote her off as another cop to try to get him to talk when he noticed the STARS emblem on the uniform's shoulder. She studied Gordon and Lindsay as she closed the door behind her.

"Excuse me, can I help you?" Hamilton asked as he paused before her. "I'm afraid my patient is resting right now and only friends, family, and authorized personnel are allowed to be in here."

The STARS member was surprised as she focused on the doctor. "My name is Jill Valentine. I'm an officer with the STARS task force and was told that my presence was requested here."

Gordon scrambled out of his chair, blurting out. "I did, I have a message from Captain Enrico!" Hamilton took a step to the side as Gordon hurried over to them. The words were about to spill out of his mouth when Gordon remembered where he was. "I need to talk to you alone, somewhere else."

Officer Valentine stared at him quizzically. "Is there a reason you can't tell me right here and now?"

As much as he wanted to believe that Doctor Hamilton wasn't one of the bad guys, Gordon had seen enough movies to know that just because someone was friendly didn't mean they weren't on the other side. Plus, while he didn't remember too much, he knew Umbrella practically owned the town. Who knew if this room was bugged? "It's only for STARS. Can we talk..." He went through a list of possible locations likely to be free from Umbrella before he realized how would he could even tell. "... on the roof?"

He wished Valentine would stop staring at him like he'd grown a second head. "I suppose that's fine," she eventually replied before turning to the doctor. "Can you give me the directions?"

"Of course, officer," the doctor answered; his efficacious manner still strong. He gave them detailed directions before taking his leave.

Jill took the lead as the pair of them ascended to the top of the hospital. As they walked, Gordon thought about how this particular conversation was going to go. _I've got to make her believe me. So, how much should I tell her? Do I skip the zombies and the monsters and just tell her where to meet the others? Or should I tell her everything so that she knows what to expect? _Gordon didn't get long to ponder his predicament as the two of them stepped out onto the flat rooftop. Immediately, winds shoved at him as they raced over the building. Despite the ferocity of last night's thunderstorm, the only evidence of its existence was a damp blanket covering the city that was under attack by an active sun shining in a clear sky. Gordon remembered being caught at the beginning of it, only a few minutes into it did they discover the train that took them to the training facility. He unconsciously took another look at the vast Raccoon forest, which bordered the city on three sides, marking the city as a peninsula in a sea of trees. _And it's filled with monsters which will end up here. _

"Gordon Hammonds the Third."

Unlike some others, Gordon didn't mind being 'The Third'. He liked the title, but caught the signal and his attention focused back on Officer Valentine. As he looked at her, he wished he could have been relieved that she was the STARS officer to arrive. He didn't know the details, but he knew enough to know she was one of the good guys. But good or not, she didn't have any reasons to believe him. The confused frown on her face was a clear signal that this was a meeting she wasn't looking forward to either. "You said you had a message from Captain Enrico?" she reminded him.

Gordon vigorously nodded his head. "Yeah. He needs Alpha Team to meet him at a location in the forest. He's discovered an illegal biological weapons lab owned by Umbrella and he's needs help with the investigation."

An uncomfortable pause followed.

"Can you tell me what's Enrico's last name?" Jill finally asked.

With a small, noiseless mental pop, Gordon lost all hope of convincing her. "No, I can't." He struggled to come up with anything that might help him. Nothing was going as he wanted it to. He wasn't supposed to be the spokesman - that was supposed to be Kevin's or even Ryan's job. Gordon was the quiet one at school, he didn't like standing out. "But I also met Rebecca and Edward," he blurted before throwing out a brief description of their appearances.

After he finished, Jill continued her questions, her voice carefully neutral. "And where are they?"

Gordon winced. "Rebecca was supposed to come back with us, but she decided to go after Enrico and help him. Edward...Edward's dead."

His answer caused her frown to widen. "How?"

For better or for worse, he hadn't been there when Edward died. All he saw were Billy and David carrying his body down into the basement. Nobody explained to him what killed Edward, and, at the time, he didn't really want to know either. That's when Gordon gave up and decided to start from when they found the train. He avoided how they got into the forest and could tell Jill noticed that missing piece too, but he continued on how they got from the train to the training facility. He thought he was making some progress when he explained how Kevin was hurt in the crash, and she unconsciously nodded in agreement with his explanation. Unfortunately, once he got to the part where he was left behind, he had precious little to tell her, and it was only when it was time to escape was he directly part of the action. He told her about the final battle with the giant, but didn't like the strange look she was giving him. He explained how the party had split up, David, Enrico, Tiffany, and Rebecca leaving the others to investigate the Umbrella labs, the instructions Captain Enrico left behind along with a list of coordinates to the labs for Alpha team to follow. The encounter with the axe man brought her back toward her side as she nodded with the facts he presented to her. When he finished his recounting, he ended it with a plea. "Please, you have to help them. Even if you don't believe anything else, please believe me when I say they need help!"

Jill studied him for another moment, her face still clear of discernible emotion. "...can I have the coordinates you referenced?"

_Yes! _Gordon immediately shoved his hands into his pockets for the critical piece of paper. His hands found his skinny wallet, his useless cell phone, some clinking change... His eyes widen with horror when he remembered where that slip of paper was. "Ryan had it. I'm so stupid! I should've grabbed it while I could." Even as he said the words, a shiver of fear rolled through him at the thought of looking through his dead cousin's pockets. His gaze shifted to the forest, his thoughts being pulled into darker, bloodier places.

Jill sighed before she rested a hand on his shoulder. "I think you had more important things on your mind."

He looked back at her with a glimmer of hope. "You believe me?"

The hesitation crossing her sympathetic face wasn't reassuring. "You're asking me to take a lot on faith, Gordon. Some of the things you've told me have some evidence, but a lot of it doesn't have anything backing it up beyond what you tell me. And, Gordon, it bothers me when you don't tell me how you and your friends ended up in a quarantined forest." She paused in open invitation.

Gordon stared guiltily at the city, watching a couple of crows fly over the park. The sounds of the city were now in full swing as Raccoon woke up to another day. _How can I possibly explain that!? _He wished David or Tiffany was here. He only heard their cover story once when explaining it to Kevin back all the way at the beginning of last night. Bits and pieces of it lingered in the corners of his mind, but wouldn't it be worse to offer a broken explanation than none at all?

A moment passed before Jill pressed on. "I'm willing to believe that the others are in trouble. I'm even willing to believe that you had an encounter with the cannibal murderers STARS is investigating. If there's anything you can tell me about where STARS Bravo team and your friends have gone, it'd mean we'd get there faster."

As soured as his mood was by the loss of family, his eyes snapped toward the forest. "It was off to the right from the training facility when we were coming here. So, it's somewhere..." He frowned. "Did anybody notice an explosion last night?" When Jill shook her head, he tried to find a smoke cloud or a fire, some kind of indicator of where the training facility was before it exploded. The forest did not oblige; content to keep its secrets. "Well, we were coming this way," he said as he pointed in the general direction of travel. "It was to the right of that."

"Anything else?" she gently prodded as she analyzed the meager tidbit.

"Ummm, wait! The railroad tracks weren't far away from the crash site, so if you found the copter, that could help you find the training facility and the labs." He looked at her with dismal hope. "Right?"

Officer Valentine nodded. "Yes, if what you told me is true-"

"It is!" he insisted, his voice raising a couple octaves in desperation.

"Then that would help." She glanced at Raccoon Forest before she removed her hand from his shoulder. "If that's all you can tell me, then we should get going."

Gordon raised a worried eyebrow. "Go?"

"Yes, I need to contact the rest of Alpha team, and I need you to take you to the police station, in case you remember anything that might help us," she casually explained.

The brown-haired teen took one look down through the hospital and pictured men in dark suits with Umbrella's logo on their coats abducting Lindsay. His gaze darted towards to Jill. "I think I should stay here," he replied vehemently.

His negative response took the STARS by surprise. "You're not injured," she reminded him, her tone still controlled and sympathetic. "You can be of greater help to your friends if you come with me."

He shook his head. "I know you don't believe me that Umbrella is behind all of this, but they are! If they found out that Lindsay came from one of their secret bases, they'd kill her or abduct her! I've got to stay and keep an eye on her." He saw the reluctance in her eyes and did the first thing that came to his mind. He dropped to his knees. "I'm begging you!"

Jill sighed as she studied him, weighing unseen options before she made her decision.


	4. Ch 4: Hills

**Ch.4: Over the hills and through the Woods**

"C'mon, keep up! At this rate, we ain't gonna git there until next week."

Rebecca heaved an exhausted breath before she glared at her infuriating companion. The longer the two of them traveled together, the more things she found irritating about Tiffany May. She was taller and bigger than the pint-sized Rebecca, which meant she had to move faster to keep up with Tiffany's strides. The woodland they traveled through would drop pointed reminders about the size difference fallen trees, large rocks, and other obstacles. While Tiffany hopped or bounded over them, Rebecca had to take a few extra seconds climbing over them, like the current log she was sliding over. The newest member of STARS Bravo team landed on her feet before spinning around and jogging up to Tiffany.

The larger teenager stood casually next to a tree, used to the short stops in their journey to the Umbrella labs. Tiffany stared at the cop with an open face of frustration. Rebecca wanted to remind her that unlike a certain civilian running around in wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and a jacket, she was still wearing her STARS uniform, especially her body armor. Not only did the heavy piece of clothing wear her down, it also constricted her breathing as her chest pushed against it, which led to her staggering up to Tiffany.

Tiffany sighed as she rolled her eyes. "Do ya need another moment?"

Rebecca wanted to shoot something back at her but was too tired to yell. She nodded. The two of them had been traveling all morning, something her aching legs clearly wanted her to memorize. They'd left the others not long after Captain Enrico left. Although her superior had ordered her to return to Raccoon City and alert Alpha Team, Rebecca had disobeyed, waiting a few minutes before she and Tiffany headed after him. Her intention was to rejoin with the Captain right as the three of them arrived at Umbrella's main facility. The plan required stealth and good timing, making sure they didn't run into him before they arrived but not lose track of him at the same time. They started off slow, allowing Enrico to build up his lead as they practiced stealth movement. Rebecca had called upon her police training during her practice, while Tiffany had a knack for it, honed by the few times she had hunted in the woods. After enough practice, they tried to catch up to Enrico, not to meet him but close enough for them to see him. That was where the plan faltered.

After two hours of power walking through the woods, they realized they had missed him. They had strayed somehow and neither knew where he was. After that, the only thing left to do was head for the labs and try to regroup with him there. Rebecca scanned the forest ahead of her as she recovered her stamina. Somewhere ahead of them, Umbrella had a secret, bio-weapons lab. _I just hope we're going the right way,_ she thought to herself. She wanted the place to be empty of moaning zombies and rampaging monsters, but one glance at Tiffany extinguished that vain hope. That was because she knew Tiffany's secret. It was the same secret that Tiffany's friend, David, shared: they were from the future. Rebecca didn't know how they gained the ability or why David had picked such an odd assembly for reinforcements, but she knew he was from the future. She counted a dozen incidents last night as she, David, Tiffany, and Billy had traversed through the Umbrella training facility where David had used his knowledge to protect them and to guide them to safety. She even managed to get him to indirectly confirm his status as a time traveler.

She glanced back at the path they walked through, wondering if he and the others were at Raccoon City yet. _Probably so_. Rebecca bet he knew the layout of the forest like the back of his mind. A sudden thought struck her. _Wait, is that why he gave up so easily? _She now stared at the forest accusingly, her eyes trying to pierce the natural camouflage to see a certain someone in artificial camouflage. After everyone had escaped the training facility, a brief meeting was held on what to do. Captain Enrico had ordered everyone but himself to return to Raccoon City to contact Alpha Team, to ensure Billy was incarcerated, and to seek medical help for the wounded. Although David and his friends were from the future, they didn't have perfect foresight. During the night, he had been bitten and had been unable to prevent the deaths of his fellow soldiers, Private Carnes and Private Askew.

Naturally, Enrico wanted him to return safely to the city, along with the remaining civilians. Most of David's friends agreed. Tiffany and David had argued, but Enrico wouldn't budge. David had been eager to offer his help to STARS, whereas Tiffany simply wanted to fight. Neither argument prevailed, so they had turned to duplicity, lying to the STARS captain they would obey. After Enrico left, Rebecca had done her best to convince David he should actually go to the city. He agreed readily…too readily.

Cursing her naïveté, she saw no sign of him but couldn't shake this feeling he was simply lurking out of sight. Tiffany threw another retort to keep going at her. Taking one hesitant step, then another, Rebecca surrendered her scan and returned to the path. _He should know better than not to come. He could be infected and is going to need medical treatment if he wants to avoid becoming a zombie. _The logical arguments felt oddly toothless when she compared to them to his rather consistent behavior in playing the part of a hero. She'd have to keep an eye out now.

"How long are ya gonna keep mopin' back there?" Tiffany called out as she led the way.

Biting back harsh words, Rebecca scowled at her. She wanted to run and…do something. Yell at her. Maybe even take off that stupid cowboy hat of Tiffany's and throw it to the wind. Why was she wearing that thing anyway? Combine the hat with the cowboy boots, and it looked like Tiffany was making a lazy attempt at dressing up as a cowgirl for Halloween, even if she was wearing authentic versions instead of cheap stuff bought from a holiday store. "What's the hurry?" Rebecca demanded.

"We're losing daylight!" her compatriot reminded her. "With his head start, who knows how many kills your Captain is gonna make before we get there." She pouted. "If we don't hurry, he's gonna steal all the fun."

Anger, red and hot, flashed through Rebecca. The sensation used to be an occasional experience was quickly becoming a regular occurrence to her. That mere fact only made her angrier. She couldn't comprehend how Tiffany could derive any joy from the life-threatening battles with the undead. The cowgirl's whole attitude to last night, like it was some kind of game, enraged the medic. She wanted to scream her fury at her ally, but her lungs were tired and she needed the energy for the rest of the march to their destination. So, she glared at Tiffany before she focused on keeping up with her, forgetting her suspicions about David. _I should have made her go back to Raccoon with the others….if only I could have. _She channeled her frustration into her legs as she half-marched/half-stomped onward.

The emotional energy carried her all the way back up to Tiffany's side and the pair returned to silence. As the last of her anger bled out onto the forest floor, Tiffany asked, "What's that?"

Rebecca gazed wearily up, and instantly shifted to alert mode as she held up her shotgun. Ahead of them, the forest laid siege to the largest cabin she'd ever seen. The two-story building sat uneasily as grass and trees grew around it, its brown walls weathered but not aged. A row of windows stared out, hiding the view within as the sunlight bounced off.

After a moment, Rebecca sighed. "This isn't the mansion we saw earlier."

Tiffany grunted. "Yeah, but it just might be a part of it. Remember how the last mansion was connected to a church and an underground base? I say we take a look inside."

Her argument leeched the strength out of Rebecca's protests. She glanced to the left and to the right. "I wonder which way is the entrance?"

"Right there," Tiffany answered as she pointed her submachine gun straight ahead at the windows.

"Don't be ridiculous," the medic chided. "We should go through the front door, without risking cutting ourselves on glass."

"Uh-uh." The cowgirl threw daggers as she glared back toward what was left of the training facility. "If it's anythin' like back then, then the front door will be unlocked, but then there'll be a dozen locked doors, each requirin' findin' some random key, and each of those will be found only after solvin' some stupid puzzle. I refuse to play that game again. I'm goin' through the window."

"You're not –"

A whetted hiss knifed through the air. The two teenagers paused as they looked for the source. The source identified itself when a long, green-scaled snake fell from a nearby tree. Rebecca instinctively hopped away from the reptile's landing. Not a moment after it fell, the snake slithered towards her, its intent plain to see. Rebecca didn't give it a chance before she blasted it to shreds with a shell.

"Wow," Tiffany muttered as she glanced up at the forestry. "What'd you do to piss it off?"

Rebecca stared uncomprehendingly at the snake bits. "It doesn't make sense." She took a step closer as she mentally measured it.

"Which part?"

The STARS officer took an unsure step away from the mess. "I had to study the local wildlife, in case I have to treat animal bites or venom. That snake shouldn't have been that hostile, and it's too large for any of the species that live in this forest."

"Uh-oh," Tiffany declared with a grin. "Big snakes? Like giant cockroaches and leeches?" Her gaze shot to the cabin. "~I sense an outbreak,~" she sang with an all-knowing tone. Her eyes flashed to the dead snake. "They're not poisonous…are th-AAH!?"

The sound of a twig snapping was Tiffany's only warning before another snake fell on top of her shoulders. The cowgirl twitched and tried to snatch at the creature, but she couldn't stop it from digging its fangs into her shoulder.

"Goddamnit!" she hollered through gritted teeth as her hand finally grasped onto the reptile's body. She pulled at it, but its fangs pushed deeper as it anchored itself.

Rebecca stepped forward to help when she heard two more drop behind her. She whirled around before opening fire on them. No matter how quickly they moved, the snakes couldn't dodge buckshot. Tiffany released her hold on her weapon, the machine gun hanging on by its strap. With her now-freed hand, she gripped the snake's head and squeezed, slipping a thumb in-between its jaws as she applied the pressure to the top of its head. It struggled but lost the wrestling match as she forced it to release her. She focused her rage on the thin monster as she crushed the life out of it.

With a huff, she threw the dead thing against the nearest tree. "Damn snakes," she hissed as she clamped a hand over the bleeding shoulder.

"Let me see it," Rebecca quietly ordered as she grabbed her med-kit and hurried over to her.

"You didn' answer my question about the poison or not," Tiffany reminded the medic as she pulled the cloth away from the injury.

"Only the red ones," Rebecca assured her. She pulled out her last first aid spray before she meticulously applied it, using only as much as she needed. The spray went back into the box the moment its services weren't needed. She paused as a thought struck her. "Unless…the T-virus causes a mutation." A brief mental image of a giant, poisonous snake staring here in the face sent a shudder down her spine.

Tiffany chuckled as she let her shirt slide back over her shoulder. "Guess I'm infected either way, ain't I? Ah well. Now, back to gettin' inside." The high school student marched up to the first window.

Rebecca could only stare incredulously. "…doesn't any of this mean anything to you?"

Tiffany threw a quizzical glance over her shoulder. "What'cha goin' on about?"

"You!" Rebecca shouted. "You could be infected by a virus that has no known cure, and is not only lethal, but will also reanimate you as one of the living dead. And you just brush it off like it's nothing. Why!?"

A sigh was Rebecca's answer. "You worry too much about these things. If I die, I die. I ain't gonna go out whinin' like a bitch."

"How can you be so cavalier about this?" Rebecca demanded.

"Cavalier?" Tiffany repeated, a big question mark on her face.

"How can you be so nonchalant...so easygoing about your own life?" Rebecca paused, a suspicion entering into her eyes. "Do you…want to die?"

Something flashed through Tiffany's face too fast before Rebecca could catch it. Whatever it was, Tiffany's usual, cocky smirk. "I'm just here to kick ass." She abruptly turned her attention back to the window. "And to do that, I need to get in there."

Rebecca wished she was better at reading people. _I should have taken that psychology elective when I had the chance. _"It's too dangerous here, we should find the main entrance," she advised as she put away her kit. She momentarily debated trying to order Tiffany to go back to the city and seek treatment, but the chances of that happening were as good as Captain Wesker revealing himself to be a secret mad scientist.

"And risk into runnin' into somethin' worse? You can go off and do whatever you want. I'm taking the shortcut." Tiffany pulled out her reserve handgun and fired through the window. One, then two rounds punched through the glass, leaving two small holes at the center of even larger spidery cracks. Tiffany paused before she raised an eyebrow. "Ain't it supposed to shatter? In the movies, all it takes is a few shots and the whole thing comes tumblin' to the ground."

Rebecca sighed. "Glass doesn't work like that."

"Well, it's comin' down, whether it wants to or not!" Tiffany declared as she batted at the weakened window with a nearby branch. Under the insistent barrage, the window broke. The cowgirl cleared away the rest of the fragments from the bottom side, giving her hands a safe place to put before she leaped into the building. Rebecca sighed again before she followed.

The buzzing of wings was the two's first and last warning before wasps as large as baseballs flew at them. Rebecca reflexively squeezed the trigger, and four wasps dropped out of the air.

"The hell!?" Tiffany blurted as she stared down at the corpses.

Rebecca fought the urge to stare too. Instead, she surveyed the area. The two of them were standing in the middle of a hallway. Ahead of them, the hallway abruptly turned to the right with a human corpse guarding the corner. A large…. farming tool was in its hands, Rebecca thought she saw. _Poor person. _She had an inkling how painful his death must be. When she checked behind her, her heart nearly stopped.

Saliva-covered wood, moulded and formed into a wasps' nest occupied the other end. As in, the nest was larger than a full-grown man as it hung off the ceiling and the walls, above somebody's former desk. There was a part of her mind that wasn't surprised. Huge wasps meant a huge nest, but the nest could hold dozens, perhaps hundreds of the giant wasps. Her medical mind began analyzing the amount of poison just one of those stingers would have. _Enough of those things, and we'll be dead in no time, allergies or not. _

Even as she formed the thought, the nest became alive as the swarm awoke to the nearby intruders.

"Oh shit," Tiffany mumbled when she caught sight of the nest.

Rebecca broke her gaze away from the nest and headed in the opposite direction. "We need to run!"

Submachine gun fire brayed as Tiffany shouted, "we'll never find safety in time!" The bullets tore into the flimsy wood, but with so much mass, the hive ate the hot lead as it poured out its defenders.

Rebecca halted her retreat at the corner, about to implore Tiffany to run one more time when her eyes recognized what the dead man held in his hands. It was an old-fashioned bug spray. Praying to whoever was listening, the STARS officer let her shotgun slip through her fingers as she lunged for the anti-insect weapon, and hoping it wasn't empty.

No matter how many rounds she fired, Tiffany couldn't make more than a dent in either the nest or the swarm flying straight at her. "Damned bugs," she swore as she backpedaled away from the vanguard of the wasps.

"Get down!"

Instincts served Tiffany well as she dropped to her knees. Above her, a cloud of grey gas plumed and met the wasps' charge. Instantly, the first wave twitched before falling to the floor only inches away from Tiffany. Rebecca passed the kneeling cowgirl as she advanced against the hive. The swarm, no matter how hard it tried to defeat the trespasser, couldn't withstand the well-equipped assault.

Tiffany climbed back to her feet, a sullen grimace on her face, now that she was a useless bystander. Her ear twitched when the fluttering grew louder, even as the swarm before her died away. She brushed off the noise without much thought. And regretted it a moment later when she felt something stab into her shoulder. Her head jerked and she found a squadron of the giant pests coming in from behind with one audacious wasp already on her scoring the first blow.

With one angry swipe, she slapped it against the wall before she waved her arms in front of her, disrupting their flight. "Why can't you be bigger so I can shoot you!"

The wasps flew in and around her arms as they tried to find a place to land and deliver their payload. One wasp landed on her jeans, but was stopped with a quick kick, which left it fluttering on the floor as it attempted to become airborne.

"I've got them," Rebecca announced as she pointed the nozzle past Tiffany's face and sprayed. Three wasps dropped, leaving only two. The first one was without its stinger flew threateningly around the pair, but another spray finished him off. The last one, crippled with a damaged wing as it bounced along the floor, felt Tiffany's wrath as she stomped on it four times.


End file.
